The present invention relates to hand protective systems and more specifically to hand protective systems associated with welding operations.
Discrete metal pieces such as steel and wrought iron often need to be combined as necessary to implement any particular project. Horizontal and vertical steel pieces might need to be integrated when they intersect at a corner, for example.
The process most often employed for attaching such discrete metal pieces is welding. Typical welding operations begin by powering electric arc welding and oxyacetylene-powered blow torches to high optimum welding temperatures. Such optimum welding temperatures begin at 350 and can reach extremely high temperatures of 6300 degrees. Next, the welder must wear gloves typically made of leather or fire-retardant fabrics. In some instances, a thin aluminum glazed pad attached to a welder's hand by elastic straps can be worn over the gloves.
Only then can the welding operation begin. The blowtorch in one hand and a welding stick in the other are simultaneously applied to the seam to be welded. As welding operation proceeds, radiant heat slag, flames and molten pools are produced. Here, the fire-retardant gloves worn by welders protect the welder's hands from burns during welding. As the welding operation intensifies or as the duration becomes longer, the radiant heat slag, flames and molten pool often burn through the aluminum-glazed pad and/or the glove subjecting the user to burns.
Another element that is continuously emitted during such welding operations is radiant heat. Radiant heat is transmitted through gloves to the user's hands. At that point, welders either discontinue or rush through the welding operation.
If the welding operation is overhead, radiant heat slags, flames and molten pools fall toward the welder. The gloves and pads may be raised for some limited overhead protection.
It is within this context that the present invention addresses one or more disadvantages of conventional systems and methods.